John Lister

Twitter has launched a video-sharing service similar to YouTube but designed for people with shorter attention spans. Unfortunately, questions over adult content could spell doom for the service. The service is called 'Vine' and is specifically ... designed for the Apple iPhone. It lets users upload and share a video clip of up to six seconds in length and then publish a link to the clip on Twitter. The idea of a short clip service isn't new: rival application 'Tout' does the same thing but offers users 15 second previews. In both cases, it appears the idea is to minimize the amount of storage ... (view more)

Microsoft has revealed it plans to expand its range of Surface tablet computers. The Redmond, Washington-based firm says that building multiple Surface devices will increase the number of consumers who can afford to purchase the product. The ... revelations came during an investors conference call to discuss Microsoft's latest financial figures. The company's chief financial officer, Peter Klein, said the Surface range of tablet PCs had been one of the three main reasons -- alongside Windows upgrades and licensing to businesses -- that Microsoft's revenue has increased. According to Klein, when ... (view more)

Three Eastern European men now stand accused of operating a global scam designed to steal "tens of millions" of dollars from banks by means of a special virus known as "Gozi." The same virus is also said to have compromised about 190 computers at ... NASA during a five year period, revealing confidential log-in information and instant messaging transcripts. Gozi Virus Infects 1 Million PCs The prosecutors in the case claim the Gozi virus infected more than a million computers worldwide, including large numbers in such countries as Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Turkey and the ... (view more)

Security researchers have uncovered a complex virus capable of reappearing even after it is thought to have been removed from a computer system. This so-called 'Red October' virus reportedly attaches itself to Adobe Reader and Microsoft Office ... software. The virus is named after the Tom Clancy novel about a Soviet submarine crew trying to defect. It's an appropriate moniker because the majority of computers infected by the virus are located in Russia and Eastern Europe (though there are victims in at least 37 other countries). The infections mostly affect computers used by government ... (view more)

A court in Saudi Arabia has refused to try a blogger charged with insulting the Islamic religion. Raif Badawi would have faced the death penalty if convicted of his alleged "crimes," which included the simple act of "liking" a Christianity page on ... Facebook. Badawi runs a website called the "Liberal Saudi Network." He was arrested last year after proclaiming May 7 as a day for discussing social and religious matters. Badawi Charged for Allegedly Abandoning Islam A lower court originally concluded Badawi's offenses were so serious that his case should be passed on to a higher ... (view more)

The United States Air Force (USAF) plans to add 1,000 cybercrime experts to its current workforce of 6,000 computer professionals. The reason: there is a concern that Iran may soon pose a serious threat to US Internet security. Although the Air ... Force budget as a whole is likely to be cut, observers expect extra recruits in Space Command, the unit responsible for monitoring and controlling United States Internet security, satellites, and long-range missiles. (Source: ohsonline.com ) Cyber Command: Leading, Preventing Online Attacks Space Command is a unit within the larger Air Force Cyber ... (view more)

The group behind a collection of 'premium' hacking tools is apparently charging hackers $10,000 a month for permission to use their product. The proceeds are helping fund rewards for anyone who shares information with the hackers about previously ... unknown software vulnerabilities. According to security firm Sophos, the 'premium' hacking kit is the work of a group called 'Paunch.' This is the same group that previously offered hackers a set of tools known as the Blackhole kit, which users could access only after paying a $1,500 per year rental fee. (Source: sophos.com ) The Blackhole kit was ( ... (view more)

A hacker has figured out how to run Windows 8 software on the Windows RT operating system, installed on Microsoft's Surface and other tablet computers. According to the hacker, any differences between Windows RT and Windows 8 are entirely artificial ... and for marketing purposes only. Windows RT is described as similar to Windows 8 but is supposedly designed exclusively for portable devices built around ARM processors. These chips can greatly extend battery life, but are said to lack the computing power needed for a robust operating system like Windows 8. Users of Windows RT notice one major ... (view more)

United States officials believe Iran is responsible for a string of recent cyber attacks on American banks. They say the sophistication of the attacks and the hacks' aim of disrupting services rather than stealing cash both suggest government rather ... than private activity. The attacks have been coming since September and have disrupted the online services of many U.S. banking institutions, including Bank of America, BB ... (view more)

The U.S. Library of Congress has completed its archive of every Twitter post during the first four years following the site's launch. Unfortunately, making that archive useful has proven extremely difficult. Back in April 2010, the Library of ... Congress signed a deal to archive Twitter posts, known as 'tweets.' The Library's Gayle Osterberg says those tweets are an important and valid research source. "As society turns to social media as a primary method of communication and creative expression, social media is supplementing, and in some cases supplanting, letters, journals, serial publications ... (view more)